Date Set for Mulvey, Lawn Signs Theft Hearing in Princeton

A pre-trial hearing for Princeton University Professor John Mulvey, 67, who was arrested last month and charged with the theft of business signs advertising Princeton Computer Tutor services, has been scheduled to take place in Princeton Municipal Court on Monday, September 8.

The alleged thefts are said to have occurred at various times since June 2013 in the area of Rosedale Road near Elm Road.

Computer Tutor owner Ted Horodynsky had put up a camera in an attempt to find out who was responsible for removing his 2 by 2 foot signs, worth more than $20 each, from private property locations. After sharing his surveillance video of the lawn signs being removed with the Princeton Police Department, an investigation by Detective Sergeant Christopher Quaste and Detective Adam Basatemur discovered 21 lawn signs in Mr. Mulvey’s garage. Mr. Mulvey was arrested at Princeton Police Department headquarters. The signs were returned to Mr. Horodynsky.

The arrest and details of the incident as told from the point of view of the Computer Tutor business owner made the news on Channel 7, July 17. Mr. Horodynsky was filmed walking along Nassau Street with a news reporter. He expressed his hope that Mr. Mulvey gets help and doesn’t lose his job at Princeton University. According to Mr. Horodynsky, the video shows the business signs being removed on five separate occasions by Mr. Mulvey, allegedly stealing them and taking them away in his vehicle, whose license plate was recorded on camera.

Mr Horodynsky captured the news broadcast on video and has posted it to YouTube (www.youtube.com/watch?v=en7tctSbqT0).

Mr. Mulvey has been teaching at Princeton University since 1978 and is a professor of operations research and financial engineering and a founding member of the Bendheim Center for Finance, which conducts research into links between financial economics and fields, such as engineering, operations research, mathematics, computer science, psychology, and public policy. According to the University website, Mr. Mulvey “has built significant planning systems for government agencies, including the Office of Tax Analysis for the Treasury Department, and the Joint Chiefs of Staff in the Defense Department.”

Mr. Mulvey has claimed that he was picking up debris. He has hired experienced Princeton attorney, Kim A. Otis, who has served as Municipal Prosecutor in both Princeton Borough and Princeton Township. He is one of a small number of attorneys in Mercer County certified by the Supreme Court of New Jersey as a Criminal Trial Attorney.

Mr. Mulvey and Mr. Otis will appear at the pre-trial hearing scheduled for 1:15 p.m. with John F. McCarthy III as the expected presiding judge.